Youth Rugby

Another great article from our young writer Arun! He delves into what a healthy player needs to be thinking about over and above merely training hard.

As players started to turn their minds to the eagerly awaited Premiership & Championship kick-off. Most of them are just finishing a term known as “pre-season”, an action undertaken by clubs from levels 1 to 10. Pre-Season is a process where players will get back into game day shape and go through around 5 weeks of out and out strength & conditioning fitness work, before they switch to more gameplay focused work. Players will work both in the gym and on the field to try and get the edge on their opponents for the forthcoming season.

Year 8, common entrance, teenage life and of course the pinnacle of senior prep school rugby. Whilst all of these events occur during this year, there is another factor that is the point of this piece.

That is that year 8, or in rugby terms the under 13s, marks the start of the RFU academy system where all 14 RFU funded academies start recruiting the stars of tomorrow. Whilst for the players selected this brings joy and a feeling of pride amongst them and their family, for those unselected or unsuccessful at trials it can provide a negative effect on their lives and added stress to the already busy lives of common entrance and entrance exam studying 12 to 13-year olds.

Our Ambassador, Adam Preocanin, has played top level rugby across the world. His latest blog gives us some valuable insight into his coaching experience. You don’t often get to hear tips from a professional rugby players coaching point of view so we hope you enjoy this. Many thanks for your thoughts Adam!

As well as playing professional rugby, I have also held various coaching roles over the past few years — from schoolboy rugby in Australia and England, to men’s rugby at London 1 level.

Without simply re-packaging a RFU coaching resource, I will try to discuss an area I feel is important to bear in mind when coaching kids. Hopefully it will bridge the gap between professional rugby and the Sunday morning bedrock of the game.

We know a lot about rugby but have to admit we don’t know so much about autism. So reading this is a real eye opener and shows how rugby is a family for everyone. Thanks for sharing your story Lisa.

How Rugby works with Autism

It took 4 very long years for Ellis to get his formal diagnosis of Autism. We just struggled on as parents do, trying to do what we thought, and still think, is the best. In this his dad, Graham, and I have discovered that being a parent to an autistic child is one of the loneliest and isolating jobs we as have ever done, but also the most rewarding, especially when your son is involved with rugby!

To look at our 9 year old autistic son, you wouldn’t think he had a neurological disorder, because he is what I would call an average 9 year old boy. He loves his Lego, playing on his tablet, playing out with his friends, and then he has his passion of rugby.

When Rams Youth Chairman, Bill Gornall-King, signed the Old Mutual Kids First pledge last March little did he know it would result in a surprise visit from three top England players.

Courtney Lawes, fresh from the huge win against Fiji the previous day, Jonny May and Tom Wood secretly arrived at the club on Sunday 20th November whilst all the children were training.

The England Players were invited by sponsors Old Mutual Wealth to promote Kids First Rugby, a pioneering approach to rugby for 6-13 year olds where children will learn rugby skills and build confidence in a fun environment. The focus is on the children and giving them equal opportunity and encouragement on the pitch.

Here at BeRugby magazine we believe in the future stars of rugby and want to do everything we can to inspire them and to keep them involved in this great game. Have a look at our mission statement.

In our Youth section we will be providing articles to help, support and interest all those involved in youth rugby. From parents and coaches of the minis and juniors to clubs and volunteers that keep the sides running. We also want to hear from you. Share your experiences with others and let us know how you keep your young players interested and involved in rugby.